FREMONT — By next year the Fremont Unified School District could be host to the nation’s largest K-12 school solar project.

The district is negotiating a contract with Renewable Ventures Fremont Power to install solar panels over parking lots or along athletic fields, atop structures 9.5 feet to 12 feet high at 13 schools by early next year. Systems would be installed later at about nine additional sites.

The systems would be financed and owned by Renewable Ventures, and installed by Chevron Energy Solutions. The district would agree to buy the power from Renewable Ventures for a minimum of five years.

After five years, the district could buy the solar equipment from Renewable Ventures or could continue to purchase the power for two more decades — the remainder of the agreement. The district still is negotiating what would happen to the systems after the contract ends.

The district would save at least $10.7 million, versus $61.9 million, if it were to purchase the photovoltaic systems after five years, according to a district report. However, Fremont Unified would have to pass a bond or find another way to finance the buyout. The systems, which would cost approximately $42 million for construction, probably would be sold at fair market value, said Therese Gain, facilities director for Fremont Unified.

The school board will be asked to approve the contract at its Aug. 26 meeting but won’t have to decide whether to purchase the equipment for another five years.

If all goes according to plans, Fremont Unified would have the largest school solar program in the country, project team members said.

“I’m excited about the project. We can do the right thing (environmentally), and it’s not costing us an arm and a leg,” Gain said.

Electricity generated by the solar panels would power 76 percent to 80 percent of a school’s energy use, according to project team members. The electricity rate would be predetermined, making it easier for the district to predict its budget each year.

In addition to cost savings for the district, Chevron would provide a solar education curriculum for classroom use. A half-dozen community members spoke in favor of the arrangement during Tuesday’s board meeting, shortly before trustees voted unanimously to move forward with negotiations.

“This is the direction, the wave of the future. Our children will be proud. Our community will be proud,” said Darryl Parker, a representative with Satcon Technology Corp., a Fremont company that develops clean power conversion systems.

But at a June board meeting, several individuals representing other solar companies urged the district to enter a competitive bid process instead of negotiating exclusively with Renewable Ventures, and, by extension, Chevron. However, the district must fast-track negotiations to meet certain state deadlines in order to qualify for as much as $13.8 million in solar credits, Gain said. Chevron also is the only company with state preapproved design plans, she said.